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A 57-year-old male, diagnosed with a 1.2cm diameter non-small cell lungtumor in the right upper lobe and deemed unfit for surgery as a result ofsevere emphysema, was the first patient to receive the pioneering radiotherapytreatment at the hospital in early September.
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"We normally use ultra-precise stereotactic radiotherapy in these casesand we have now treated more than 400 such patients in this way," said Dr. BenSlotman, chairman of the hospital's department of radiation oncology. "ButRapidArc offers some real time-savings over stereotactic radiotherapy and itsuse in this case is a real breakthrough for us and our patients."
The pioneering treatment was delivered in less than 15 minutes versus the30 to 45 minutes normally needed by the team at VU University Medical Centerto treat lungs with image-guided intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Thetreatment was delivered using six arcs -- or rotations -- of the treatmentmachine around the patient. RapidArc delivers a volumetric radiotherapytreatment in a single or multiple arcs of the treatment machine around thepatient.
"We were very pleased with how the treatment went," added Dr. SureshSunan, professor of clinical experimental radiotherapy. "The online patientsetup using cone beam CT scans allowed direct visualization of the tumor justprior to fast treatment delivery using RapidArc, all of which greatlyincreased the confidence of the treatment team in the precision of delivery.The high dose radiation area was restricted to the tumor and the surroundinghealthy tissue and critical organs received very low doses."
"Due to the high precision and the speed of treatment delivery, and theassociated increase in patient comfort, RapidArc will eventually replace all'conventional' stereotactic treatments for early stage lung cancer at ourhospital."
RapidArc was introduced by Varian earlier this year and to date more than30 hospitals around the world are using this new technology for advanced,precise and fast treatments. Non-small cell lung cancer treatments requireextremely precise radiotherapy delivery to avoid affecting surroundingcritical organs. Worldwide, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deathin men and the second leading cause of cancer death in women.
Editorial contact: Neil Madle, Varian Medical Systems, +44 7786 526068
About Varian Medical Systems
Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, is the world'sleading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer andother medical conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, proton therapy, andbrachytherapy. The company supplies informatics software for managingcomprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centers and medical oncologypractices. Varian is a premier supplier of tubes and digital detectors forX-ray imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications and alsosupplies X-ray imaging products for cargo screening and industrial inspection.Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 4,800 people who are located atmanufacturing sites in North America and Europe and in its 60 sales andsupport offices around the world. For more information, visithttp://www.varian.com/.
SOURCE Varian Medical Systems
